Researchers from UBC’s faculty of medicine have been awarded over $2.5 million from Canada’s Stem Cell Network (SCN) to advance six regenerative medicine research projects and clinical trials.
The funding is part of a $19.5 million investment by SCN in 32 projects across Canada. The investment is the largest in SCN’s history, made possible through increased funding by the Government of Canada in 2021. Stem cells have traditionally fuelled the field of regenerative medicine which is focused on regrowing, repairing or replacing damaged or diseased cells, organs and tissues.
The largest of the UBC-led projects funded by SCN will receive $1M to conduct research and a clinical trial for one of the world’s first genetically engineered cell replacement therapies for type 1 diabetes. The project aims to support the development of a potential functional cure for type 1 diabetes.
The six projects led by UBC faculty of medicine researchers are:
Dr. Nika Shakiba, assistant professor, school of biomedical engineering
Project: Elucidating the competitive advantage of aberrant pluripotent stem cells in suspension bioprocesses
$300,000 — Early Career Researcher Jump-Start Awards
Dr. Carl de Boer, assistant professor, school of biomedical engineering
Project: Decoding human cis-regulatory logic in development to treat disease
$300,000 — Early Career Researcher Jump-Start Awards
Dr. Sheila Teves, assistant professor, department of biochemistry and molecular biology
Project: Transcription regulation of hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes during maturation and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
$300,000 — Early Career Researcher Jump-Start Awards
Dr. Pamela Hoodless, professor, department of medical genetics, school of biomedical engineering
Project: Pathways of cell identity in human liver organoids
$250,000 — Impact Awards
Dr. David Thompson, clinical assistant professor, department of medicine
Project: Clinical trial of the first gene-edited cell replacement therapy for type 1 diabetes
$1,000,000 — Clinical Trial Awards
Dr. Michael Underhill, professor, department of cellular and physiological sciences
Project: Novel therapeutic strategies to promote liver regeneration
$399,200 — Fueling Biotechnology Partnerships